Snapshots
by moon-girl8
Summary: This a very nice romantic story about Sydney and Vaughn in which you can see the evolution of their relationship.
1. Until Then

Snapshots

Title: Snapshots, Chapter 1: Until then

Author's Note: First, you need to know that the story takes place before the SD-6 destruction. Irina is not there, and Francie is obviously the very nice Francie we once knew. Second, I just wanted to warn you about something. This is not a fic where there is a story. Well, of course there is some plot (don't worry!), but I made this fic to be like little snapshots of precise moments. It's like opening a photo album and telling a story with each pictures. So basically, you could easily read each chapter separately and still understand what it is about. There is no big link between chapters. I hope it is clear enough for you. If it's not, well, I think you'll understand when you read chapter 2 of this story. 

By the way, I just wanted to tell you that I've already finished this story, because I'm a very lousy "updater" and I didn't want you guys to wait like a billion years for the next chapter. So there are gonna be 9 chapters. Hope you enjoy it! And please do review! It really helps!

Rating: General (If you see something that goes beyond that, just tell me. I'm not really good with rating, but I don't think there's heavy stuff in my story!)

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What if I told you it was all meant to be,  
Would you believe me  
Would you agree  
It's almost that feeling we met before  
So tell me that you don't think I'm crazy  
When I tell you love has come here and now  
  
A moment like this   
Some people wait a lifetime  
For a moment like this  
Some people search forever  
For that one special kiss  
Oh I can't believe it's happening to me  
Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this.  
  
Everything changes but beauty remains  
Something so tender  
I can't explain  
Well I may be dreaming but till I awake  
Can we make this dream last forever  
And I'll cherish all the love we share  
  
A moment like this   
Some people wait a lifetime  
For a moment like this  
Some people search forever  
For that one special kiss  
Oh I can't believe it's happening to me  
Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this  
  
Could this be the greatest love of all  
I wanna know that you will catch me when I fall  
So let me tell you this  
Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this  
  
Some people wait a lifetime  
For the moment like this  
Some people search forever  
For that one special kiss  
Oh I can't believe it's happening to me  
Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this  
  
Oh Oh like this  
  
Oh Oh Oh Oh  
  
I can't believe it's happening to me  
Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this  
  
Oh like this 

-----------------------

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"Moments Like This", by Kelly Clarkson

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Chapter 1 : Until then

Sydney woke up early on the sound of the radio. After barely forty-five minutes, she was ready to go to work. She didn't know what her plans were yet, but Sloane would probably be the one who she'd get that answer from. When she arrived at SD-6, she found her presumption to be correct as the big boss ordered her and a couple of coworkers in the conference room. Sydney sat in her usual chair, her thoughts beginning to drift away from Sloane's words. She was thinking about the meeting she was going to have after, more precisely about the man that she would be seeing. Lately, she had found herself thinking more and more about him. And not just in a friendly way. In the beginning, she wondered what it was. It certainly couldn't be something romantic, because having feelings toward your handler was something very dangerous and forbidden. But as time went on, she realized it was indeed love she was feeling, and it terrified her a bit. There were a ton of reasons why she shouldn't feel that way about Vaughn - it was against protocol, they could risk their life - but these arguments were soon forgotten as her feelings for him got deeper. Now, her major concern was if her love was returned. 

"Agent Bristow? Agent Bristow? Sydney?" Sloane's voice woke her from her very interesting thoughts.

"I'm sorry. I'm a bit tired. What were you saying?" It was in her best interest to listen to the details of her next mission if she wanted to have something to say to Vaughn later on. So she reluctantly paid attention to what her boss was telling her, hoping it wouldn't last very long. 

When she was finished at SD-6, she contacted her very gorgeous handler, and he told her to meet him at six o'clock at the warehouse. While Sydney was counting the minutes until their next meeting, Vaughn was trying to write a very important paper, but couldn't find the concentration to do it. His thoughts always floated away to Sydney. From the moment he first saw her, he knew he was in danger. Falling in love with that woman was something he wanted to avoid, but he rapidly found out that it was impossible to do so. All he could do, though, was to dream about the day where loving her would not put their friends and themselves in a very dangerous situation, where she loved him back, where they could have a normal relationship, where his life would be perfect… 

Sydney arrived at the warehouse just a little bit before six o'clock. She was surprised to see that Vaughn wasn't there yet. He was almost always the first one to come in here, and she often had taken advantage of that fact by admiring him from afar, during a little time, just before she made her presence noticed to him. 

Vaughn arrived a couple of minutes after Sydney, and she turned around when she heard his footsteps. She was wearing jeans and a tee shirt, and that was what made her even more beautiful: she could be extremely gorgeous to him even by wearing simple clothes. 

"Hi!" Sydney said, as she approached him. 

"Hey, how are you?"

"Fine. Well, Sloane is sending me again on a mission that is supposed to be for the benefit of America but is really just to magnify his power. But beside that, I'm doing great. Really great!" Sydney was getting tired of this endless operations that seemed to never lead to the destruction of SD-6 and to the end of Sloane's reign. Her emotions got to her a little bit. "Sorry... I didn't mean to complain to you like that."

"Hey, that's okay. You have every right to feel that way. And I have good news. If everything goes well for this mission, it will be a great step forward for the destruction of the Alliance."

Vaughn started explaining to Sydney her counter mission, and soon their meeting came to an end. But neither of them wished to leave; they both wanted to take advantage of this moment, their only moment when there could be just the two of them. Sydney knew that if she didn't find something to say to him, she would have to declare it a night. So, she said the first thing that came to her mind. 

"So, how are you and Alice? Are you doing okay?"

'Why did I have to ask that?' Sydney thought. She mentally kicked herself for having said those words. She didn't care if they were completely and madly in love with each other. She didn't want to know that. 

"Hum..." Vaughn wondered why she had asked that. It was clearly a sign that she didn't share his feelings. "Actually, we broke up."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She wasn't, but she figured it was the right thing to say. Telling him that she was really happy because she was head over heels in love with him and that it killed her to imagine him with another woman seemed a little bit inappropriate. 

"It's okay. It was a mistake to get back together in the first place."

"Why did you do it then?" Sydney couldn't help herself; she was curious. 

"Well..." Vaughn didn't know what to answer, because telling her the truth was admitting that he had feelings for her. He couldn't say that he got back with Alice because he thought it was the only way to stop thinking about Sydney. "I don't know really. It just happened. I thought that I still loved her, but I don't. Why do you ask?"

"I was just curious." So Vaughn was available… In a perfect world, she would have jumped with joy, made her move, and they would finally be together, but in this world, it didn't really change anything. It was still too dangerous to have a relationship with him, and it was still against the rules, but more importantly, she still didn't know how he felt about her. 

"I should get going," Sydney sadly said. "It's getting late, and to tell you the truth, I'm beginning to be very hungry!"

"Yeah, me too!" Vaughn laughed. "Well, be careful out there."

"I will. Bye."

"Bye."

Sydney started to walk towards the door, but while doing so, her arms brushed up against Vaughn's as she got past him. The electricity that came off of it surprised both of them.

"Sorry," Sydney said, a bit embarrassed. 

"It's okay." he said, still absorbed of what had happened. 

They again said their good bye's, neither of them wanting to leave one another. But they had to, and Sydney left the warehouse, trying to do her best not to look back at the man she loved. Doing that may have resulted in urges taking over what her logic self knew to be right. 

While Vaughn hated the fact that he couldn't spend more time with Sydney, he was looking forward to see her leave. He sighed once she was out of her sight, because if he had been a second more in her presence, he wouldn't have been able to control himself, and he would have run off to her and kissed her passionately. 

However, these desires would have to be postponed until later, where being together would be a possible thing. Before seeing that happens, all they will be able to do was to dream about this future day, where the word perfect would find its meaning…


	2. So Long

Author's Note: I'm not gonna repeat all the concept of this fic. If you want to read it, go to chapter 1! Hope you guys like this chapter!!  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own Alias. Wish I did, but sadly it can only be true in my dreams (where I also own Michael Vartan!! :P )  
  
Rating: Still General.   
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
  
**Chapter 2: So Long**  
  
  
  
Vaughn had been pacing up and down, filled with deep anxiety, for about an hour now. He looked at his watch and wondered, for the hundredth times, why Sydney hadn't shown up yet. He had been told that her plane was landing at 8 p.m., and that she was supposed to meet him in the warehouse right after that. The problem was that his watch was telling him that it was way past that time. Vaughn looked again. Ten thirty.   
  
'God, what is she doing?' he wondered, very worried.   
  
That was all Kendall's fault. He was the one who denied him the participation he wanted in this. He was the one who made his anxiety grow even bigger as the days went by. The man had become his worst enemy.   
  
Two weeks. Vaughn hadn't seen the woman he loved for two very long weeks. The worse was that, during this time, he didn't even have a clue as whether she was still alive or not. He had hoped for the best, but that had been all he could do, since Kendall hadn't wanted him involved. He had said it was too dangerous. Jack will handle it, he had also rambled. Sydney had been captured during a SD-6 mission; involving too many CIA agents was a careless decision to make, he had added. Vaughn had been ready to leave this frustrating conversation and to disobey his boss right away to save her. But as he was about to do that, Kendall had warned him. If he tried to do anything behind his back, he would find himself without a job. And that meant nearly no possibility to see Sydney. He couldn't risk that. At the end of these two weeks, he almost broke protocol, not standing to be just an accessory in this mission. The only thing he had been allowed to do was to search the web. What Vaughn wanted to do was to go there, wherever Sydney was. As he was about to jump on a plane, Kendall had called him.   
  
"We found Agent Bristow, and she will soon be on a plane. You're going to meet her just after it lands at 8 o'clock," he had said.   
  
That had been a very good phone call, and relief had been immediate. Now, the feeling of joy had been transformed into one of big worry. He looked again at his watch. Ten forty five. Where was Sydney? He had called Kendall an hour ago to see what was happening. The man had told him that he hadn't heard anything. However, he had received confirmation that Agent Bristow was on the flight, so there was no need to worry. Perhaps the plane was just late.  
  
While Vaughn was wondering if he should call his boss again, Sydney was just leaving the Los Angeles airport in a very smelly taxi. The stupid plane had to stop, because of a problem, one she didn't really care about. All she wanted to do was to come back home and to see Vaughn. The past two weeks had been worst than hell, and the only thing that helped her get through this nightmare was the thought of the man she loved. It wasn't the first time she had been captured, but this time was pure torture; it wasn't like anything she had ever experienced before.   
  
She had thought about running into Vaughn's arms when she would get out of that hell, she had thought about kissing him like crazy, but she realized now she couldn't do these things. These actions she swore herself she would do once she was liberated were soon confronted with reality.   
  
'I can't do this,' Sydney though. 'It's way too stupid. How could I have thought about that? No, it's too stupid… I just can't.'  
  
She looked at the taxi window. There were near the warehouse, but there was a bit of traffic. She wondered if she should call Kendall to let him know she had arrived in the city, but she figured it was unnecessary since her father had been with her in the plane and he had probably called him.   
  
Sydney was very surprised at what Jack had said to her during the flight. He told her to take a taxi to the warehouse to see Vaughn where she had to describe him how went the mission. What took her by surprise is what her father said next. He told her that Vaughn had been very worried during these two weeks, and that he would probably like to see her. And vice versa. Her father had been able to go past protocol, to see that his daughter was in a lot of pain, and that she needed a good friend to lean onto. And that friend was Michael Vaughn. Jack basically told her that he accepted the fact that Sydney and Vaughn were more than just colleagues. That surprised her a lot.   
  
She looked again outside, and saw with relief that they were seconds away from the warehouse. As soon as the taxi arrived there, Sydney paid the man and ran inside. As she did that, she kept thinking back at what had happened to her, how close she had come to never see the face of the man she loved again. Her thoughts about running into his arms and kissing him came back to her.   
  
As she walked toward him, her heart took over, and her thoughts became the reality. As she ran to him, all she could think about was how much she wanted to be close to him, to kiss him. And she did just that.   
  
As soon as Vaughn saw Sydney came in, a big smile appeared on his face. He walked to her, seeing the same happy smile he had on her face. He prepared himself to give her a big hug, but as he got closer to her, he saw that it wasn't what she was going for. He understood her intentions, and his smile got even wider.   
  
Sydney got near Vaughn, and she didn't waste any second. She put her arms around his neck and brought her lips onto his. As for him, he didn't wait and kissed her back. The passion was immediate. Sydney's arms were running into his hair, Vaughn's fingers were caressing her waist, and their thongs were playing with one another.   
  
They both couldn't believe what was happening. It had finally happened. Those months of desiring each other, but never being able to act on their feelings were over. All that longing were pulled into that one kiss. They had waited so long to do that, and they were seizing the moment. Everything around them seemed like a blur. The reason of Sydney's lateness, the details of her mission… All that didn't matter to them. The only important thing right now was this moment. This one perfect and passionate moment.   
  
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Hope you guys like it! And please review!!  
  



	3. A Proof

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Chapter 3: A Proof 

A/N: Thank you so so much for your nice reviews!!! I really appreciate it! J Now, up with the story!!

Title: Snapshots, Chapter 3: A Proof  
  
Author's Note: I'm not gonna repeat all the concept of this fic. If you want to read it, go to chapter 1!  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own Alias. Wish I did, but sadly it can only be true in my dreams (where I also own Michael Vartan!! )  
  
Rating: Still General.   


~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After making sure again that nobody was following her, Sydney quickly opened the door and went into the closet. She opened the light and looked around her. There wasn't a lot of place, but the space was used at its maximum. There were a couple of brooms at the back, many shelves containing soap, towels, and a display of many other objects. Only one thing was missing. A person to be more specific: Vaughn. They were supposed to meet here at three o'clock to do some things that they couldn't really do in front of all the CIA employees.

Vaughn and her had been dating for almost three weeks now, and except for a little number of people, - only Weiss and Will - they had succeeded in keeping their relationship a complete secret. Their meetings at the warehouse had become a very good occasion to do a lot if kissing! This time was extremely precious to them since it was nearly the only moment where they were allowed to act on their feelings without having to worry if someone was watching them. There were occasions where they would talk for hours and others where making out was the chosen option. As the days went by, their mutual attraction deepened, and the moments they spent apart felt more and more like torture. Tired of this situation, Vaughn had come near Sydney, this morning, and had subtly slipped her a paper that told her to meet him in the closet beside the cafeteria at three o'clock. During the whole day, they had been both awaiting this moment with deep impatience. 

It was now a little past this time, and he hurried to the closet. Kendall had once again justified Vaughn's choice of making him his worst enemy. This man had held him back with no reason into a very boring and useless meeting. As soon as it had been finished, he had practically run to the closet, but had restrained himself so that suspicions wouldn't be aroused. 

He soundlessly opened the door and entered the very small room. 

"Hi."he said when he saw Sydney standing there.

"Hey."she breathed to him, just before kissing him deeply. 

They made out during a couple of minutes, letting all their feelings into that kiss. 

"I missed you," Sydney said, between kisses.

"I missed you to," he said, just before going in for another exciting kiss. 

After another couple of minutes, they stopped their rush of passion without, however, letting go of each other. 

"Hi."he said.

"Hi again."

"I've got a surprise for you after work."

"Really?" She lifted her eyes to meet his, a very curious look appearing on her face. "What is it?"

"Wouldn't be a surprise if I told you, right?"

"I don't care.I want to know! I have my ways, you know." A mischievous smile appeared on her mouth, and both of them knew what that meant. 

"Nope," he still said.

She brought her lips to his, and kissed him hard. She stopped and looked at him to see if he had given up.

"Again, no. You'll see it in just a few hours."

She kissed him again, this time, even more passionately than before. Vaughn tried not to return her extremely nice kiss, but after a couple of seconds, he couldn't do it anymore, and he gave up trying to resist her. Sydney was tempted to back away from him to finally know what exactly was the surprise about, but she decided that making out a little bit longer with the man she loved was a way better option. 

They were both so concentrated into their kiss that they didn't hear the knob being turned. They didn't even hear a man entering the room. This person coughed to let them know he was there, but that didn't work.

"Guys.Guys!" he said, a bit louder. 

Sydney and Vaughn broke off their kiss to look at the person who had interrupted them. 

"Eric!" Vaughn said, relieved that it was him who had surprised them. "Thank God! I thought you were Kendall"

"Yeah well.it could have been him. Hey, that would have been funny! Anyway.Piece of advice: watch out. You wouldn't want me dying of laughter!" Eric took a look around the small room. "Hey, I've never heard of this closet. Yeah.It's a really good place.very hidden. I'll have to keep it in mind for next time."

Vaughn sighed and turned to Sydney.

"Hey, you want to see the surprise right now?"

"Sure!" she said with a happy smile on her face. 

They quickly left Eric, who was still contemplating the very useful closet. Just before entering the headquarters, Vaughn slipped to Sydney another piece of paper and left her standing there. While he was leaving to get to the parking, she found the women bathroom, went into a cabin and opened the paper. 

__

1214 Stewart Street

In twenty minutes

She figured the surprise would be there and couldn't wait until then. Twenty minutes after Eric had surprised them, Sydney took her car and drove there. She made sure nobody was following her and found the address with a bit of difficulty. The place was a very old restaurant called Bernie's, and it was very small. As she entered in there, she took a look around and concluded that this must not be a very popular place. The tables and chairs were old and dirty, the food didn't seem very good, and the customers there didn't quite exactly look like the usual people she would hang out with. However, as soon as she saw Vaughn sitting in the complete back of the restaurant, all those bad things vanished as she walked towards him, a big smile quickly emerging on her face. 

"Hey!" Sydney said, after giving him a small kiss. She sat down and looked around. 

"Hi," he said, "So.Do you like it?" he asked. "I found this place a couple of days ago, and I figured it was the ideal place for us to meet."

"That is the surprise?" she asked, in a bizarre voice that may mislead people into thinking she didn't like it. 

"Don't sound too enthusiastic."

"I'm sorry. I just imagined something else. I don't know what, but.Hey!" She had just realized the meaning of this encounter. "We can be seen in public!" 

"Well, you were often complaining about only meeting in secret.Now, we have our very own place where we can see each other and not fear being surprised by people we don't really want to see."

"That is great. I love it!" She leaned in and kissed Vaughn to thank him for the surprise. 

A teenage punk boy, who was about sixteen or seventeen years old, came to their table.

"Can I bring you something?" 

"Sure.What do you have?" Sydney asked. 

"Hamburger, hot dogs, fries, and drinks," he said, in a detached voice. 

They ordered, and their meal came quite rapidly. As they took a bite of their food, the same weird look appeared on their face. 

"This taste like feet!" Vaughn said.

"I'd say worst than that!" Sydney added, before the couple burst out laughing. "This is awful."

They still finished their meal, enjoying their time with each other. They stayed there for hours, just talking, laughing, footsie playing, even kissing a bit. The fact that the atmosphere of the restaurant wasn't very appealing didn't matter to them. They now had a place where they could act like a normal couple in love - even if they hadn't said that word to each other yet. This place was the proof that there was solution to the many obstacles that were put in front of them. This place was the proof that, together, they could survive anything.


End file.
